FAYETTEVILLE – The 14th-ranked Arkansas Razorbacks will host the #3/2 Purdue Boilermakers for the second of two exhibitions on Saturday (Oct. 28) with tipoff set for 3 pm at Bud Walton Arena.
The game is not part of 2023-24 Arkansas men’s basketball season ticket package and admission requires the purchase of a separate ticket. The game is a near sellout and will be streamed on SEC Network Plus and Watch ESPN App.
Per NCAA rules, exhibition games between two Division I programs must be for charity. This year, proceeds from the Arkansas-Purdue contest will go to Arkansas 211, a program of the United Way, to assist with relief efforts from the tornadoes that affected Arkansas this past spring.
Arkansas is coming off a 92-39 victory over UT Tyler in the Razorbacks’ first exhibition game. This will be Purdue’s first exhibition game of the season.
The Boilermakers are ranked #3 in the AP preseason poll and #2 in the coaches preseason poll. They return five starters and six of its top seven scorers from last year’s Big Ten championship team that was also the #1 seed in the NCAA East Regional. Headlining the list of returning players is 2023 National Player of the Year Zach Edey along with 2024 Jerry West Award candidate Fletcher Loyer.
NOTES:
• Eric Musselman and Matt Painter are two of eight coaches nationally to average at least 25 wins over the last eight seasons.
• This will unofficially be the third time Arkansas and Purdue have met. The two programs split the first two meetings.
• The Boilermakers won the initial meeting, 57-51, at the 1939 Sugar Bowl Classic in New Orleans.
• In the “most recent” meeting — a second round matchup in the 1983 NCAA Tournament in Tampa — 9th-ranked Arkansas won, 78-68. Alvin Robertson had 26 points and eight steals, setting a school record for steals in an NCAA game. Darrell Walker added 23 points and Joe Kleine had 12.
• Arkansas and Purdue could possibly be a rematch next year. Sports San Diego officials announced that the field for the 2024 Rady Children’s Invitational will include the Arkansas Razorbacks, BYU Cougars, Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Purdue Boilermakers. The second annual tournament will take place Nov. 28-29 inside LionTree Arena on the campus of UC San Diego.
• For the second-straight year, a ranked Arkansas team will face a ranked opponent in a charity exhibition game. Last year, then #12 Texas Longhorns out-scored then #10 Arkansas 25-5 to open the second half and cruised to a 90-60 victory. It was the first game played in Texas’ new Moody Center. While it’s not an official game, here are Arkansas’ records when:
– Playing #2 AP team: 6-9 Overall (5-2 H • 0-6 A • 1-1 N)
– Playing as #14 AP team: 29-5 Overall (13-0 H • 8-2 A • 8-3 N)
– Ranked ARK vs Ranked Opp: 48-50 Overall (18-4 H • 4-16 A • 26-30 N)
For more information on Arkansas Men’s Basketball, follow @RazorbackMBB on Twitter.
Note to Our Readers: The previous story was sourced directly and in its entirety from the University of Arkansas Office of Communications, Mike Cawood.
